Top Aces Inc., the world’s premier provider of live-fly Adversary Air (ADAIR) and Close Air Support (CAS) training, is proudly celebrating its 25th anniversary of service. Founded in Montreal by veteran Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) CF-18 pilots, Top Aces has since evolved into a global leader, achieving an industry record of over 140,000 accident-free training hours in support of NATO and allied nations.
In an industry where Experience Matters, Top Aces boasts the largest fleet of commercially operated fighter aircraft in active service and is the world’s only commercial owner/operator of the F-16. Top Aces’ mission-critical training enhances the operational readiness of combat forces by delivering real-world experience while creating significant cost efficiencies and extending the lifespan of military aircraft fleets.
For more information, please visit www.topaces.com.
Alumni Company Profile
Paul Bouchard, President and CEO, RRMC RMC 1990
Paul has been President and CEO of Top Aces since 2012. He co-founded the company in 2000 and has held various executive positions since its inception. Paul is a widely-respected thought leader in the rapidly emerging contracted adversary industry worldwide.
Paul is a graduate of the Royal Military College of Canada and a former CF-18 fighter pilot. He is also a graduate of the prestigious CF-18 Fighter Weapons Instructor Course, Canada’s Top Gun School.
Paul has led businesses and organizations through international growth, operations, and M&A. He has also led startups, private companies and publicly-listed companies to success. In 2007, Paul and his partners were recognized as finalists for the prestigious Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award for the startup success of Top Aces (Discovery Air Defence). Since that time, Top Aces has grown to become the recognized world leader in the delivery of highly specialized advanced adversary, air-defence and JTAC training services around the globe.
Paul was recently honored to receive the 2018 J.A.D. McCurdy Trophy, presented by the RCAF Association to Top Aces in recognition of outstanding and praiseworthy achievements by Canadians in the field of civil aviation. The award recognized the company’s very unique skillset and thorough dedication to its mission of providing adversary training of the highest quality, for the benefit of air forces in the United States, Canada, Germany, Australia and their allies.
In addition to his professional pursuits, Paul gives back to the community by being a proud supporter of Canada’s active duty and retired personnel. He combines his years of corporate experience and his support to military personnel as a member of Canada Company, a charity that assists Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) members, Reservists, and Veterans through a series of initiatives.
Didier Toussaint, Group President, RMC 1990
Didier is the Group President of Top Aces Inc. and is responsible for all Top Aces Operations and Program. Didier founded Top Aces in 2000, and along with his partners expanded this Canadian aerospace company to make it the world leading Combat Support Training Services provider flying one of the largest fleets of privately-held operational Fighter Aircraft in the world.
Didier is an honours graduate of the Royal Military College of Canada in mechanical engineering and a former CF-18 pilot. Didier flew the CF-18 for over 8 years and was awarded the prestigious “Top Gun” award for best overall performance on the CF-18 Fighter Weapons Instructor Course. He has accumulated over 4500 flying hours over his career, and was involved in numerous operations worldwide, including leading the Canadian CF-18 contingent in the Kosovo conflict. Prior to leaving the Canadian military, Didier was the Deputy Project Director for the CF-18 Modernization Program and Project Director of the CF-18 Weapons Projects.
Didier held the position of President of Top Aces and DA Defence from 2000 to 2012, along with various senior executive positions while at Discovery Air and Top Aces between 2007 and 2017. Didier is now the Chief Operations Officer, and is responsible for all Top Aces Operations and Program P/Ls. Didier is a widely-respected Defence business executive and leader, and has led several organizations through business capture, successful implementation of operations, Government contract management of complex aviation services, as well as several successful M&A activities in the last 10 years.
Didier was recently honored to receive the 2018 J.A.D. McCurdy Trophy, presented by the RCAF Association to Top Aces in recognition of outstanding and praiseworthy achievements by Canadians in the field of civil aviation. The award recognized the company’s very unique skillset and thorough dedication to its mission of providing adversary training of the highest quality, for the benefit of air forces in the United States, Canada, Germany, Australia and their allies.
In addition to his professional pursuits, Didier likes to give back to the community as a mentor and guest speaker in Canadian Universities, in the fields of Entrepreneurship, Engineering, R&D and Ethics.
Daniel Gibeau, Chief Technology Officer, CMR RMC 1987
Daniel joined Top Aces in 2006. In his role as CTO, Daniel oversees all technical operations namely aircraft maintenance, engineering, supply chain operations as has overall responsibility for technical airworthiness at Top Aces.
He has worked in aircraft operations, aircraft engineering, and project management for government and industry for over 25 years. He also worked in complex aircraft simulation systems as a Program Manager at CAE, where he distinguished himself as the leader for the development, production and delivery of 27 visual systems for the Euro fighter simulator.
In the area of aircraft maintenance operations, he was chief of engineering and maintenance in a tactical fighter squadron operating a fleet of eighteen CF-18 aircraft in Bagotville, Quebec, and was the maintenance leader of a contingent of 80 maintenance technicians during Canada’s participation in the NATO Air Campaign over the Former Yugoslavia.
Prior to that, he was part of the CF-18 Fighter Aircraft Engineering Organization as a Chief engineer for the Canadian Program of live air-to-air missile firing, and as the Project Manager for the acquisition of Canada’s air-to-air missile fleet.
Daniel is a graduate of the Royal Military College in Kingston with a Bachelor in Mechanical engineering; and of the United States Naval Postgraduate School, where he obtained a Master of Science in Aeronautical Engineering and an Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering degree. He also has an MBA from the Université du Québec à Montréal.